This Q&A article is about sustainability upgrades in our Vic strata buildings.
Table of Contents:
- QUESTION: What percentage special resolution do you need for EV infrastructure investment in Victoria? Is it 75% or 50%?
- QUESTION: My hybrid car requires an AC charger but my building only has DC chargers. I use a common property power point to charge the car but have been told that this is not allowed. What do I do now?
- QUESTION: If we were planning to fully focus on just one sustainability option to start with in our Vic strata building, what would be best to get the ball rolling?
Question: What percentage special resolution do you need for EV infrastructure investment in Victoria? Is it 75% or 50%?
Answer: 75% of all owners for a final resolution, or 50% of all owners for an interim resolution.
A special resolution is required:
- to obtain a loan that exceeds the amount of the current annual fees of the owners corporation
- to raise a levy that is more than twice the current annual fees
- for a significant alteration to common property that is not in the maintenance plan and is not an immediate threat to safety or will prevent significant damage.
As installing EV infrastructure is likely to fall under these headings, a special resolution is required.
A special resolution is passed as a final resolution by 75% of the total lot entitlement voting in favour if a ballot or poll is taken. In any other case, it is passed by 75% of the total votes of all lots voting in favour.
It’s important to note that a special resolution can also pass as an interim special resolution if at least 50% vote in favour and no more than 25% vote against a resolution.
An interim special resolution can be taken as a special resolution once:
- A notice is sent to all owners (within 14 days of the meeting or the ballot close date) and
- Within 29 days of the meeting or ballot close date, no petition amounting to 25% of votes against the resolution has been received.
Alex Smale
The Knight
Email
P: 03 9509 3144
This post appears in the June 2023 edition of The VIC Strata Magazine.
Question: My hybrid car requires an AC charger but my building only has DC chargers. I use a common property power point to charge the car but have been told that this is not allowed. What do I do now?
One of the main reasons I purchased my apartment last year was because the building has EV charging stations. I recently bought a hybrid car. Since then, I found out there are only DC fast chargers available, while I need an AC charger.
I have checked our owners cooperation rules, but there is not any reference to EV chargers.
I’m paying owners corporation fees but I’m not accessing the facilities.
The DC EV charger is common property and makes up part of my levies, so I’ve been charging my car from a power plug on common property near my parking lot. My car only needs 7kw to charge and I’m using a certificated charging cable that is safe in a common area.
I’ve received an email from the building manager stating I can’t use the power point because it is common area power, and not for private use.
I’ve ignored the building manager’s email, continued to charge my car via common property power and sent a complaint to the owners corporation. I have not received a response from the committee. The building manager has sent me another email with a second warning.
What should I do? Surely this issue will become more prevalent as a growing number of lot owners purchase EVs.
Answer: The most effective recourse would be for you to engage with the building manager and strata manager to investigate charging options that would be acceptable to the community.
Many apartments now are wrestling with how to accommodate EV charging, particularly as many apartments were built well before the concept even existed. Residents with electric vehicles should ensure there is adequate EV Charging for their needs before purchasing or moving into a property. This means also checking the number and type of chargers that are suitable for your needs.
You cannot use the common property power to charge your car. It effectively means that all the owners at your building are subsiding your private car charging.
The most effective recourse would be for you to engage with the building manager and strata manager to investigate charging options that would be acceptable to the community. This could involve engaging a private company to install an EV charger in your car space. This installation should be at your cost, as it is for your benefit only. Alternatively, if there is enough demand in the building, you could ask your strata committee to investigate installing an AC charger on common property.
Alex Smale
The Knight
Email
P: 03 9509 3144
This post appears in the February 2023 edition of The VIC Strata Magazine.
Question: If we were planning to fully focus on just one sustainability option to start with in our Vic strata building, what would be best to get the ball rolling?
Answer: An LED upgrade is low hanging fruit.
An LED upgrade is low hanging fruit. It’s just very sensible. It’s bizarre to me that anyone is still installing fluoro lights at this point.
If you’re in Victoria, certainly make use of the VEU scheme: Victorian Energy Upgrades program. That’s a really great way to upgrade because it could even cost you nothing.
Even if you are paying for the upgrade, the return on investment is really clear, it’s quite easy to figure out. I would really highly encourage you to look into that. Send an electrician out there and see if you’ve got fluro lights. That’s probably the best way to start.
Alex Smale
The Knight
Email
P: 03 9509 3144
This post appears in the November 2022 edition of The VIC Strata Magazine.
Have a question or something to add to the article? Leave a comment below.
This article is not intended to be personal advice and you should not rely on it as a substitute for any form of advice.
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